Coal in trouble?

The green blogger is in Bolingbrook, IL, right now to cover Elevance‘s renewable chemistry round table and the opening of their new facility. Fortunately, she’s a little bit early so has the time to blog a bit about the current coal situation.

According to New York Times, 83 coal plants in the US have either been voluntarily withdrawn or have been denied permits by state regulators because of the prospect of regulating carbon dioxide emissions concerns and its associated high costs. The article noted that roughly 600 coal-fired power plants in the US are responsible for one-third of the country’s total carbon emissions.

Early this month, Las Vegas-based NV Energy postponed its plans to construct a coal-fired power plant in Eastern Nevada because of increasing environmental and economic concerns. The company said it will not move forward with construction of the coal plant until the technologies that will capture and store greenhouse gasses are commercially feasible, which is not likely before the end of the next decade.

There might be a lot of talk about carbon capture and storage helping the coal industry but unfortunately most of them are still in the development phase especially the storage part. You can read more about CCS development in this ICIS Chemical Business article.

Still, the coal people are betting on CCS technology to help them join the ranks of the ever-growing renewable energy industries. According to New York Times, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity spent $38m in ads last year to inform the promise of clean coal and its abundant source in the US.

Environmentalists, of course, are not convinced until the proof is out in the clean, open air.